Monday, June 05, 2006

Blaming Bush

On Sunday, the Washington Post ran the story of 42-year-old D.C. area woman named Dana who had sex with her husband without using a contraceptive (because of a "sudden rush of passion"), called her doctor for Plan B and when she found out neither her doctor or her internist prescribed Plan B she decided to "take (her) chances and hope for the best" instead of calling other doctors or going to Planned Parenthood for emergency contraception.

She ends up getting pregnant and having an abortion which she blames on the Bush Administration because the FDA hasn't yet approved emergency contraception for over-the-counter sales.

Dana describes her abortion by saying, "It was a decision I am sorry I had to make. It was awful, painful, sickening."

I feel sorry that Dana felt she had to have an abortion but I can't stand it when people have to blame the results of their actions on others. Dana goes on to say,

"But I feel that this administration gave me practically no choice but to have an unwanted abortion because the way it has politicized religion made it well-nigh impossible for me to get emergency contraception that would have prevented the pregnancy in the first place."

No choice, huh? What about the choice to have sex without your diaphragm? Dana and her husband may have a had a "sudden rush of passion" but they aren't animals. As grown human beings, we have the ability to control our urges and think about consequences before we engage in various actions. When I feel the urge to use the bathroom, I don't just drop my pants and go to town. I look for a proper place to go to the bathroom. I hate it when our society treats teens like animals who can't control their urges. It's even sadder when a middle-aged woman treats herself and her husband like that.

Dana also had the choice to look for other doctors who would be willing to prescribe emergency contraception. But she didn't. She gave up after calling her two doctors and a midwife practice. I can understand how calling three places and coming up empty could be frustrating but that's no reason to say it's "well-nigh impossible" to get Plan B. All she had to do was call Planned Parenthood. But she didn't. She also apparently never discussed her doctor's feelings regarding emergency contraception before this situation.

This quote also stood out:

The hidden world of abortion services soon became even more subterranean.

The hidden world? Have you checked your phone book lately? You know the one with the quarter-page full-color abortion ads?